The Toad Prince
by Mini Wolfsbane
Summary: Molly drags Remy into trying to help Todd win over Wanda while trying to 'fix' The Brotherhood boys in the process. Obviously, this will not end well for anyone involved. 29th story in a series. COMPLETE
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer:I don't own X-Men:Evolution, just myself (Called Molly Callum in 'fics.)  
>and any original charactersbackground characters that might pop up from time to time.

AN: And now, after the drama that was the last story, back to our regularly schedualed rediculousness!  
>Also, wow! My 29th story! I really thought Remy and Molly would be both madly in love at this point andor married. I wasn't sure how long the series was going to go when I started it, but I thought it would be 30 or 40 and I'd end it. Looks like it's going to go on for a little longer then I expected!

This one brings back everyone's favorite guys, The Brotherhood. I thought it was time to bring them back into the picture because they're so fun to write for and they seemed to have dropped out of Mollys life for a very long time there.  
>Whoops! Bad author! It's actually adapted from an earlier plotline that I never got around to really doing. (Okay, I had written it, but it turned into 'Beautiful Disaster', because I felt that there were too many things going on at once when I started it, plus the first story had gotten wiped from my computer so I had to start fresh. I originally had this plot combined with the Vanessa one. Crazy, huh?)<br>I dropped Pietro talking-like-this, because it's easier to type out.

* * *

><p>"I want to stop in and see Freddy, you mind?" Molly looked up at Remy. They were coming back from walking around the neighborhood to get away from the chaos of the Institute for a while. Sometimes it was just too much. "Um, I guess not," Remy said.<br>"What is it?" Molly saw his uncomfortable ness. "You'll probably laugh, but the last time I was here it was for delivering a message from Magneto. I wiped the floor with the Brotherhood," Remy said.

Molly didn't laugh. "What? What did I say?" Remy said. "Nothing. It wasn't really funny...just weird. It's hard to picture you going into their house like that. I mean, what did you do? Something ridiculous like wrap a curtain around a fan and spin around the room?" Molly laughed. Remy blinked. "Um...never mind. Let's go see Freddy."

They knocked on the door and Freddy kindly invited them inside. The rest of the boys were in the living room watching TV. "Hi guys" Molly waved. Pietro sped over to her in a hearbeat.  
>"Well hello again, super fine sexy thing," He smiled his brilliantly white teeth, "Did you come by finally to admit you can't live without me? That you want to have 'The Pietro Experience'<br>and go out on a few dates?"

"Uh...nobody told him?" Molly looked around.

"No," Todd giggled, "We were waiting for this moment. Hang on, hang on! Let me get the video camera!" He ran upstairs and came back, "Okay, Molly, you have to drag it out."

Molly rolled her eyes. "Um, sorry Pietro, but I do have a boyfriend now."  
>She decided to do exactly as Todd suggest and dragged it out. Pietro had hit on her and never let up. Normally she wasn't one for revenge,<br>but this was going to be fun and he would get over it quickly.  
>She knew he only wanted to date her because she rejected him and didn't throw herself at him like other girls. Which was weird since the opposite was how she ended up dating Remy.<p>

"What? When? Who is it?" Pietro asked, "That iceman kid? The southerner?  
>The dude with the weird hair? Uh, guys? Help me out. I don't know who all lives at the mansion."<p>

The three other boys rattled off names and descriptions while Todd giggled in between talking.

"It's that big walking can opener Colossus, isn't it?" Pietro looked a little hurt, "Well he may have muscles, but I have something he doesn't have.  
>I have speed, power...and, uh, more power. My dad has connections. I can get you anything you want."<p>

"Your dad is also our greatest enemy and he plans to overthrow the government," Remy pointed out.  
>"Nobody asked you to point fingers, _Gambit_," Pietro spat out his name.<p>

"Anyway," Molly said, "You guessed wrong. Colossus isn't my boyfriend."

"Here it comes," Todd whispered.

"Well then who is it?" Pietro exploded, "We named all those dorks!  
>There isn't anyone left!-Unless it's...ew...it's not a normal guy, is it?"<p>

"No, it's not a normal guy," Molly said, "It's-"  
>Suddenly she felt a pair of muscular and familar arms wrap around her shoulders from behind.<br>The back of her head was pressed against some nice, hard pecs.  
>"Me," Remy finished.<p>

Pietro's mouth fell open.

"Priceless!" Todd whispered.

Pietro, being Pietro, threw a fit. "Nonononono! Impossible! You said you weren't even interested in her! This is crazy!"

"That was a year ago," Remy said, not letting go of Molly, in fact hugging her even tighter, "Things change."

"Oh don't act like you're actually mad about it," Molly smirked, "The whole world knew you just wanted to date me because I was like the first girl ever to say no to you. You never really liked me. You probably didn't even think I was that pretty either."

Now Pietro was calm again. Calm and spiteful. "You know you're right Molly.  
>You were never my type," He straightened up to his full height, which, while not very tall, was still much taller then Molly, "You're fat anyway.<br>It's true, I don't think you're that pretty. Homely is more like it," He condescendingly pat her on the head. "I've got girls lined up, Squirt."

Remy and Freddy looked at each other, nodding in unison. Pietro just crossed the line.  
>"Boy, you've got some mouth on you, don'tcha?" Remy put an arm around Pietro and led him outside.<br>Freddy followed, then Toad followed the three of them with the camera.

Lance and Molly heard screams from outside. "I think Freddy sat on him or something," Molly said, "That would be the only way to pin him down without telekinesis."

"Sorry for Pietro's big mouth," Lance apologized, "You want something to drink?"

"No, I'm good thanks," Molly sat on the couch. She looked around. Why did they always keep the place such a dump?

Wanda came into the room and sat down. "Hey," She said to Molly. "Uh, hi Wanda," Molly said. That was as far as the two usually got in conversations, neither being the chatty sort.  
>Wanda kind of weirded Molly out.<p>

After a while, Freddy and Remy hauled Pietro back inside.  
>"I'm...very, very...uh...sorry," Pietro said slowly to Molly.<br>"Apology accepted. Maybe now you'll learn that no means no," Molly said.

"Like any other girl would turn me down," Pietro scoffed, "I mean, it figures you two would end up together anyway. He's creepy and you're, uh, well you're _you_." With that Pietro left to get away from the craziness of the boarding house.

Remy sat next to Molly, stuck to her like glue.  
>"That was nice of you guys," Molly was a little embarrassed because they had made a fuss for her, and she felt awkward being cozy with Remy around friends.<p>

"No big deal," Freddy said, taking a seat, "What have you guys been up to?"

"Too much," Molly said, "I guess I should've called you or something. It's been really, really crazy around the mansion. Do you want me to start with me having to switch bodies with Sabertooth, Remy and I going to New Orleans,  
>or Remy getting trapped in the Middleverse?"<p>

"Whatever happened first," Freddy was intrigued.  
>The boys enjoyed hearing about their mishaps, but never wanted to be a part of them themselves.<br>Lance and Todd had come back into the room at that point,  
>eager to hear the stories.<p>

They sat around for over two hours, with Molly and Remy sharing their points of view on each adventure.

"I don't think life could get weirder then having Molly in Sabertooth's body. What a nightmare!" Remy exclaimed.

"I know _I'd_ love Wanda whatever shape she took," Todd cooed,  
>getting uncomfortably close to Wanda.<p>

"Stop being annoying, you idiot!" Wanda huffed, pushing Todd away with only her hands and leaving the room.

Todd looked depressed. "Um...so why are you in love with her again?" Molly spoke up.

"Because she's amazing!" Todd said with gusto.

"Ah. Right. Amazing," Molly said dryly.

"Looks like Toady could use some help from the love doctor," Remy joked.  
>"Omigosh, Remy that's a great idea!" Molly looked excited.<br>"...I wasn't...uh...what?" Remy became confused.

"We could help him out. It couldn't hurt him," Molly winked.  
>Todd easily could be smelled from across the room at any given point in time, and the guy just looked hopeless. Remy stared at him and then looked over at Molly,<br>who looked just ecstatic about the whole idea.

"Why not," Remy sighed, obviously knowing he was getting in over his head.

"It's better then what's been going on lately," Molly smiled.

"Yeah. You could have been trapped as Sabertooth forever," Remy shuddered,  
>"Okay, I'm in. What's first?"<p>

Molly smiled, "Shower."

* * *

><p>"I love you Cherie, but I don't want to help get Todd in the shower.<br>That's where I draw the line," Remy looked repulsed.

"It's okay, we'll get it," Freddy said. Freddy picked Todd up and he and Lance took him upstairs,  
>though it was against his will as Todd was grumbling and moaning about having actually to shower "Scrub hard!" Molly called after them, "Wash him until he gets clean!"<p>

"Um, honey? That could take years," Remy joked.

Molly affectionately punched him in the arm. "You know that didn't hurt, right?" Remy just took her hand and held it for a second.  
>"I know," Molly got her hand back and put her arms around his neck and looked into his eyes,<br>"I like when we're sitting down like this. it's very cozy."

"Me too. I think they're going to be up there a while...and Wanda and Pietro went out," Remy put his hands on her waist, leaning in close.

"You really want to kiss on someone elses couch? Here?" Molly whispered.

"Mm-hm," Remy went ahead and kissed her.

Molly felt excited, happy and thrilled all at once. Remy's lips were soft and as far as she was concerned, he was an excellent kisser. She was more comfortable sitting, but standing wasn't so bad either, she just had to work at it more.  
>Remy's breath was warm on her cheek and his hands were gentle as he held her sides.<br>"tu es ma ange. Je br le de d sir pour vous. Je veux tre avec toi pour toujours,"  
>Remy was breathing faster.<p>

"Mmmm," was all Molly could manage. She started playing with his hair.  
>Molly noticed that Remy was kissing in a new and different way that she enjoyed by alternating between her upper and lower lip,<br>then giving her a real kiss. She felt warm and so happy.

Okay, so maybe it wasn't the most polite thing to do, kissing on her buddy's couch while he was busy, but they just didn't get this kind of privacy at home.

"Ewww!" Molly was vaugely aware of Pietro speeding back into the room, "Don't you two have any manners?"

"HEY! DID YOU GUYS SEE WHAT THEY'RE _DOING_ DOWN HERE?" Pietro yelled to everyone upstairs.

The only response he received were screams, splashes of water and the sound of sobbing and begging.

Pietro glared at the couple "Well knock it off before I have to bring in the hose-and I'll do it, too."

"You do that and we'll see how fast you can run with broken legs," Remy returned the glare.

"Like you could catch me," Pietro left the house with a loud slam of the front door.

"The mood is now killed. We'll have to continue later," Molly pouted, "Maybe go to the movies tonight or something."

"It's alright," Remy put an arm around her shoulders, "There isn't any romantic atmosphere around here anyway."

"You know you're right. You should go upstairs and ask them if we can straighten up the house a little," Molly said.

"...I really need to start thinking before I speak," Remy rubbed his face, getting up and going upstairs.


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer:I don't own X-Men:Evolution, just myself (Called Molly Callum in 'fics.)  
>and any original charactersbackground characters that might pop up from time to time.

AN: I was pretty tired near the end of this chapter.  
>(The part where Molly and Remy make out, just so we're clear.) It has some...weird...descriptions and it gets awkward.<br>not horrid (no groping or tongues), but I'm afraid it will be awkward to anyone reading.  
>Also, if you're you happen to be younger then 13, just skip over it.<br>Please. I'd feel better you did.  
>Sorry people. So sorry!<p>

Also, I don't see Wanda as Goth. I just don't.  
>Mostly because of personal beliefs, but because, I don't know,<br>she's never really struck me as the type.  
>It's just better if I keep away from her being Goth all together.<br>I described her as being punk instead, since she's not preppy or anything,  
>but she doesn't fall into the mainstream of subculture.<p>

* * *

><p>A couple hours later, the house was in a bit better shape and they'd finally finished Todds shower.<br>The five of them were gathered in the living room, looking Todd over and trying to figure out what to do with him.

"I think we need to change his hair and getting him some different clothes," Molly said.

"We need to do a lot more then that," Lance said, "He needs to stop eating bugs and learn how to interact with girls."

"He should learn to start showering every day," Freddy said.

"He needs a miracle," Remy smirked.

"All that's good, but he also needs to show Wanda that he's responsible, confident and independent," Molly said, "Girls like that. First we should work on the physical. Take him to the mall. How much money do you guys have?"

The boys gave her blank stares.  
>"I thought one of you at least had a job," Molly said.<p>

"_Had_ a job," Todd said, "Lance was bad at being a janitor, Freddy fell asleep doing telemarketing, I couldn't even get an interview,  
>and Peitro is getting money from his dad but he won't share."<p>

Frustrated, Molly smacked herself on the forehead, AKA facepalming herself.  
>"You guys were expelled and now you can't even keep jobs? How are you going to survive if you're not bringing in any money?"<p>

"It's not their fault, baby," Remy smiled, "Remember who we're dealing with.  
>Nice boys who lack motivation and initiative who can't keep jobs for anything. I'm surprised any of them even have girlfriends with the sorry state their lives are in."<p>

Molly realized that Remy was using reverse psychology. He was good at that, but she wondered if it would be lost on the three of them.

"That's not true!" Freddy looked angry, "We can keep jobs!"

"Yeah. You fall off the horse, you try again," Todd smiled.

"Kitty has been bugging me to go find something. She's always shoving want ads in my face," Lance said.

"Okay, this is good," Molly said, "You can work as a team, so maybe it would be best if you found something that you can do together."

"The question is, what could they do together that they couldn't screw up? And what skills do they have?" Remy wondered.

The boys thought hard for a moment, but couldn't come up with anything.

"Freddy's strong, Todd can jump really high, and Lance is pretty smart," Molly said, "I know those have to do with your powers, but it's all we have at this point. I'll get on the computer tonight and see what I can find.  
>In the meantime, I'll pay for everything and you can pay me back later. Fair enough?"<p>

"What if we can't find jobs?" Todd didn't look optomistic.

"Anyone can find a job. Even you three, Molly smiled.

They made their way to the mall.

* * *

><p>"First we'll start with your hair, then your clothes," Molly advised.<br>They went to the salon and started thumbing through the books of hairstyles.

"This one?" Molly pointed to a charming short cut with a side part.

"I don't want to look like a nerd!" Todd was disgusted.  
>"Okay, something a little scruffier," Molly said.<p>

They looked for some time, eventually settling on a short style with bangs. Simple, but not making him look like "A tool" as Todd put it.  
>Whatever that meant.<p>

"Yeah! You look so good," Molly cheered when the hair cut was finished.  
>"Doesn't look half bad," Todd ran his webbed fingers through his shorter hair.<p>

"Now my favorite part-the shopping," Molly led the charge to the nearest Millard's department store.

They put Todd in everything under the sun. Preppy, sporty, flashy,  
>conservative, stylish, vintage, outdated, updated, 70's retro chic,<br>80's insanity, 90's classics. Eventually they settled on a modern gentleman sort of look. A white dress shirt with a black vest, corduroy slacks and new black converse sneakers.

"Okay, you like it," Lance pointed out to Molly, "but will Wanda?"

"Good point," Molly said, "I didn't even think of that."

"Let's take it for a trial run," Remy jerked his thumb to a gaggle of teenage girls heading into the store. They varied from preppy to unique and punk, like Wanda. Some artsy, others all dressed up in Pink.

"Hey!" Molly waved at them like she knew them or something, "Uh, we could really use some opinions for my friend here.  
>He's trying to impress this girl, but we're not sure what kind of clothes she likes on a guy."<p>

The six girls walked over and surveyed Todd.  
>"She's...a unique girl," Lance said slowly, "Likes to wear a lot of make-up and stuff. Kind of punk I guess."<p>

"He doesn't look too bad if she's into the artsy-boho thing," A girl with jet black hair and purple nails said in a deep, husky voice.

"So we should just get him a few outfits and see what works?" Molly suggested, speaking girl. The boys just let her work.

"Yeah, but if he's trying to get her to like him, don't work too hard,"  
>A girl with glasses and a sketchpad said.<p>

"That's kind of the point, but okay," Molly shrugged.

They gathered up a few more outfits and left the mall, heading over to the Xavier Institute.  
>"What are we doing here?" Todd asked.<p>

"When you were trying on clothes we decided you needed some etiquette lessons," Remy explained,  
>"We can't do that at your house because of Wanda, so we're doing it here."<p>

They went inside and straight to the kitchen. "I have to go get something, I'll be right back," Molly left.

The boys looked at Remy. "So?" Lance said.

"What?" Remy asked.

"You know what, Yo. Don't play dumb," Toad said.

"Okay, okay. I'm sorry for breaking into your house, almost blowing up Todd and ruining your curtain and all that," Remy apologized, "It was a very long time ago though."

"They just like to hold grudges," Freddy smiled, "Don't mind them, Remy."

Molly came back. "Okay, who died? You guys look...weird."

"We were just talking," Remy smiled.

"...About?" Molly asked.

"About how he broke into our house," Todd said.

"Yeah, I heard about that earlier," Molly said, "That's over now though, so no worries.  
>Right. Um...right?"<p>

Silence.

"Oh come on! Will everybody just grow up? It was over a year ago and things are much different now. We're friends and Remy wouldn't ever do that to you again," Molly smiled.

"I wouldn't," Remy tried looking earnest.

"Just since we're clear that he wouldn't, I guess we can put it behind us," Lance said.

"Yeah," Todd said, "He was just doing his job and it's not like we've done much better."

"Finally," Molly sighed, "Okay. I got this book, but it's only going to get us so far."  
>she held up a thick book with the title of 'Manners, Dating and more for the Singles Set'.<p>

"When did you get that?" Remy smirked. Probably early on when she wanted to win him over.  
>"A long time ago, now shut-up," Molly said facetiously but while looking irked and embarrassed. Remy just laughed.<p>

She started thumbing through the book. "Read over that and we'll get started."

Todd read the passage over while everyone else hung back. Lance went upstairs to find Kitty, Freddy thumbed through magazines in the foyer...and Molly and Remy made use of the time to go into one of the empty rec rooms continue their game of tonsil hockey, as the kids like to say.

"You know if anyone catches us, we are _so dead_," Molly laughed very quietly in the semi-darkness.

"We just have to be quiet then," Remy held her close, kissing with much enthusiasm.

"You're really clingy lately," Molly whispered, "What's up with you?"  
>He was clingy, kissy, and everything-y as of late. Molly didn't understand, but she didn't really want to understand. Molly just wanted to kiss him and snuggle like any normal girl would with her boyfriend.<p>

"We've just been very...hands-off lately," Remy stopped trying to use her mouth as a spit receptacle for a minute, "What with the body switching and the New Orleans trip, I feel like we haven't been very affectionate lately. Guess I'm just trying to make up for that."

"Okay. I guess I just, uh, didn't want us to, um, take things too far," Molly felt her face get hot.

"Sorry. I didn't mean to scare you," Remy apologized, "It's just really fun making-out is all."

"It's very, very fun," Molly smiled, running a hand over Remys chest.

They quickly went back to kissing. Remy toned it down a few notches. He didn't go too fast or start breathing heavily. He just carefully left a hand on her waist while he tenderly rubbed the back of her neck.

Molly just let her hands feel around his chest or arms.  
>His body was incredibly warm, but on top of that they had both been generating lots of body heat. It was getting a little hot in the room.<p>

*CLICK*

The light flicked on. The two stopped kissing and looked up to see the three Brotherhood members standing there.

"Ummmm..." Was all Molly could say.

"Is this a normal thing or are you two just trying to get away from us?" Lance wondered.

"Ah, uh, sorry!" Molly got off the sofa, "We just...got a little preoccupied."

"With each others tongues," Todd said under his breath.

"You caught us at a bad time, okay?" Remy was a little steamed, "Just forget it and let's get back to what we were doing."

"I read the stuff, but I don't understand how it's going to help me," Todd said.

"You just have to apply it," Molly said, "You make eye-contact, ask her questions, stuff like that."

"Right," Lance rolled his eyes, "His eyes aren't looking at her face if you know what I mean."

"Well he's just going to have to work on it," Remy said.  
>He then led Todd to the nearest recliner to sit down.<br>Then Remy sat on the couch that was across from Todd with Molly. "You just have to express what's in your heart outwardly," Remy explained,  
>"Look at her face, learn to read her eyes. Look at her like she's the only girl in the world. That means not being distracted by her body, as hard as that might be. You just have to learn to pay attention and do things like leaning toward her when you're talking. Take things easy." He demonstrated by slightly leaning into Mollys direction,<br>keeping his eyes on her face, not wavering.

"How are you today?" Remy kept demonstrating with conversation.  
>"F-fine," Molly smiled, feeling embarrassed at playing the example girl,<br>having all the attention directed at her. She was desperately trying not to start giggling.

"I keep my hands to myself and maintain eye-contact," Remy said.

"This is great and all, but what about my moves? If you don't flirt, nothing will happen," Todd said.

"Except your way of flirting sucks," Lance pointed out, "Calling her ''Baby cakes' and ''Cuddle bumps' is just going to keep sending you flying through walls."

"He's right. Unless she seems interested, you shouldn't flirt," Remy said, "If you know she likes you back,  
>then you can flirt. She might seem annoyed at first, but if she's interested, she'll secretly like it."<br>Remy threw a look at Molly.

"Hey, just because I didn't mind it doesn't mean anything," Molly grumbled, "I just happened to like you first and later everything fell into place. Don't let your ego get in the way."

"It all worked out for the best," Remy swept her up into a bear hug.  
>"You're impossible!" Molly shrieked, laughing. The two of them got caught up in their own little world as Remy started tickling Molly mercilessly. She was laughing so hard she had tears running down her face.<p>

"I think class is over for the day," Todd said, getting up and leaving with the others.

"Oh...they're gone," Molly looked up after a few moments.  
>"They'll be back, I'm sure," Remy said, "I guess now we can get back to what we were doing before," Remy stroked her face with the back of his hand as he held her close with his free arm.<p>

"We'll probably just get caught and yelled at," Molly sighed.

"I did _not_ start dating you just to get caught kissing and yelled at," Remy looked annoyed, "Now, what was it Todd said? Getting preoccupied with each others tongues?"

"I'm so not French kissing you. I'm not ready for that yet," Molly leaned back a little.

"I know," Remy cupped her face easily with his hand, "We'll just start where we left off..."


	3. Chapter 3

Disclaimer:I don't own X-Men:Evolution, just myself (Called Molly Callum in 'fics.)  
>and any original charactersbackground characters that might pop up from time to time.

* * *

><p>The evening came and after about an hour alone, Molly was surprised that they didn't get caught making-out. They decided it best if they left the room so no one really would catch them.<br>They instead settled on going to Molly's room to cuddle and have more private time.

"So you think all this stuff we're teaching Todd will work?" Molly wondered.

"Time will tell," Remy said, "Anyway, I don't want to talk about him. I want to talk about us. About you. How's college going?"

"It's okay. I'm getting good grades and passing my classes. I don't know what I'm going to take next semester though. I'm thinking about taking something different, like photography," Molly said.

"You could always take an art class too. You like drawing," Remy said.

"I guess," Molly said, "I think I'd rather be self taught though. It's more fun that way. I should be taking the time to teach you to draw."

"I'd never be any good at it," Remy scoffed, "My talents don't lie in the fields of art. Painting and drawing and all that...it's not something I've ever been good at."

"Tomorrow we'll work on it then. The more you try, the better you get," Molly smiled.

"So maybe we could apply that to French kissing," Remy had a flirtatiously look on his face.

"Ah...no. No," Molly shook her head with a smile, trying to be nice about it, "I think it would be best to, uh, wait until after we get married to do the French kissing thing.  
>I don't mean to be rude it's just...I'm sorry."<p>

"I get it. You have your boundaries," Remy kissed her forehead, "And I respect them.  
>You say no, I'll listen. You say stop, I'll stop. You say no Frenching until after we're married...and that's how it will be."<p>

"Thank you," Molly said quietly.

The moment was promptly ruined by a bunch of the younger kids barging into Mollys room and shouting about something-or-other.

"Time-out!" Remy got off the bed, standing up to his full height. Everyone suddenly shut up and paid attention, "What's going on?-And one at a time," He pointed to Jamie.

"Meggan ruined my game player because she got her paint on it!" Jamie was almost in tears.

Meggans wings sparkled in the sunlight streaming into Molly's room.  
>Remy let it be her turn to explain. "I didn't do it, Pierre did. He and Michelle were running around and they knocked over my paints," Meggan said.<p>

"Pierre and I we're running around because one of Jamies' clones was chasing us. He was being really annoying," Michelle said.

"Okay," Remy said, "Jamie, did you learn anything from this?"

"...I should keep my clones in check?" Jamie said, embarrassed.

"And?" Remy asked.

"I shouldn't blame others so fast," Jamie said.

"Not without knowing everything first," Molly said, "Take your game player to Bobby and the guys.  
>If they can't fix it, you can save up your allowance to buy a new one."<p>

The kids left. Molly and Remy found themselves alone again.

"I wish we could lock the door," Remy pulled Molly back to the bed.

"One day," Molly snuggled into his chest, "One day when we're married and everything is great."

* * *

><p>The next morning, the Brotherhood boys came over around 11 in the morning<p>

"Let's make this quick. I want to go back to bed," Todd yawned.

"No way. If you're going to be a responsible guy that means getting up and staying up," Molly said. They headed to the kitchen and she handed them all glasses with some green liquid inside.

"What is it?" Freddy stared at his own glass.

"Wheat grass energy drink. Kitty swears by them," Remy explained.

Reluctantly, the boys drank the green stuff.

"That was really unpleasant," Lance made a grossed out face.

"It gets better the more you have it," Molly said.

"I liked it!" Todd said.

No one was surprised.

"Okay, today we're going to pick up where we left off and work on something new. I'm still looking at getting jobs for you guys, but how would you feel about working in the fast food industry?" Molly asked.

The three boys looked at one another. They shrugged.

"Well anyway, Kurt said Burger Bomb is hiring," Molly said.

The boys did not look at all thrilled by this prospect.

"Let's talk about jobs later," Remy said, seeing their reactions,  
>"Right now, let's just teach Todd the proper way to treat a lady,"<br>He pulled a chair out for Molly to sit down in.

"Heh. Wanda is no lady," Lance smirked.

"Hey, that's my woman you're talking about!" Todd became irritated.

"Everyone just sit down please," Molly said, now irritated herself.

"You want to have some manners, even when you're just hanging out,"  
>Remy said, "So that means no catching flies, cracking knuckles, and no-I repeat _no_-<br>burping contests."

"Got it," Todd agreed. Agreeing and doing what he was told were two different things, but Lance and Freddy could probably keep him in line.

"Maybe we should take this up in my room. The kitchen isn't very relaxed," Molly looked around. Everyone agreed and they headed up into Molly's room.

The only problem with that was that this week, Molly's room was very dirty.  
>Very, very, _very_ dirty.<p>

The three Brotherhood members stepped in and just stared. All their perceptions of girls being neat and tidy creatures were shattered.

The dishes, the ton of laundry, the books, the clothes, the toys were scattered in various places. Like on the floor, on top of the desk and around the bed. Piles of towels in random spots, the bed not made, blankets scattered around. There were dirty dishes on any flat surface, getting so bad that some of them were in danger of falling onto the floor, piled up in groups and stacks.  
>Forks sticking to plates, clothes, the floor, on a pillow. Scraps of paper were scattered, sticking out from under the piles of clothes and dishes. Everything was everywhere and there wasn't any rhyme or reason to it.<br>Not to mention the musty, slightly dirty smell in the room.

"Dude, your girlfriend's a p-mmfhrrmm," Todd started to say to Remy, but Lance and Freddy clamped their hands over his mouth lest he get himself killed.

It looked liked Remy noticed too. "Uh...Molly?"

Molly was busy getting junk off of her bed. She picked up something that looked like a very rotten, moldy pizza slice stuck to a book. She separated the two and just threw them on the floor.  
>"Yeah?"<p>

"Your room is...why is it...just...how? Why? Please, tell me why?" Remy seemed at a loss for words.  
>Flabbergasted.<p>

"Why what?" Molly was indifferent to the garbage dump that her bedroom was hiding under.

Remys face fell. "Seriously?" The four males in the room shouted.

"I know it's...a little out of control...but this is the way it always is," Molly said.

"Uh, no it's not," Remy looked at the ground. Was that something dragging itself across the floor?  
>"Your room has never been like this when I've been in here before."<p>

"Ah, well I guess all the times you came in was when I managed to keep it cleaner. It has it's good days and bad days,"

"'It has it's good days and bad days'?" Remy echoed, "You're talking about it like its alive!"

"I thought you knew I was kind of a slob," Molly said.

"Kind of. Right," Lance said under his breath.

"I guess I missed that when I wasn't walking into your room when it wasn't looking like a trash heap," Remy sounded upset.

"Trash heap? Really?" Molly was annoyed.

"Yes, really! It's a mess in here! Beyond a mess! A dump!" Remy was now starting to raise his voice.

"Okay, okay," Todd jumped between them, "Time out! We'll clean up in here and then get started."

Everyone just stared at Todd in disbelief.  
>"Did he just say he wants to clean? Clean my room?" Molly asked.<p>

"You cleaned up our place and you've been doing a lot. So it's the least we can do for you, right?" Todd smiled a little.

"He's learning," Remy looked pleased, "He's actually learning to be nice."

"I can be nice!" Todd glared.

"Yeah? Name one nice thing you've done lately," Lance said.

Todd couldn't think of anything.

They started cleaning up Molly's little dump-yard. It took a few hours, but eventually they found the floor and it looked like a bedroom again.

"Now, uh, what the heck we're we working on before?" Molly asked.

"Treating girls nice and having manners around them," Remy said.

"Ah, right," Molly said.

The couple sat on the bed. The boys grabbed chairs and watched.  
>"If she's thirsty, you get up and get her a soda," Remy explained,<br>"If she wants space, you just have to give her space."

"That includes not 'accidentally' walking into her room," Lance said.

"Or trying to cuddle with her when we're all watching a movie," Fred said.

"Or-"

"Jeez, I get!" Todd shouted, "Leave me alone!"

"It's okay," Remy smiled, "He's just passionate. He expresses it kind of weird, but passion is all the same. It takes a hold of you, and you almost lose all sense. Love is strong like that."

Molly looked away as she felt her ears turn red. She couldn't figure out why she felt embarrassed. Or why her heartbeat was pounding in her ears.

"Maybe we'll practice a little," Remy moved to let Todd sit in his place.

Todd just stared at Molly blankly for a moment.  
>"What?" Molly raised an eyebrow.<p>

"I'm sorry. It's a little hard to imagine you as Wanda, you know?" Todd rubbed the back of his neck.

"Because I'm not yelling at you and acting moody?" Molly giggled,  
>"Wait, hang on. I've got an idea."<p>

She ran out of the room and came back momentarily. Molly now had on Kurt's image inducer that she'd borrowed, (after asking), since he wasn't using it at the moment.  
>Molly switched it on and instantly had taken on Wanda's appearance. She went back to sit next to Todd.<p>

Todd scooted over and was very quiet. "I'm so thirsty," Molly commented in a perfect imitation of Wanda's voice,  
>thanks to the watch's voice module.<p>

"I can, like, get you something," Todd smiled, getting up.

"Thank you, Todd. That would be lovely!" Molly/Wanda smiled.

"Good job," Remy looked satisfied, "Now we'll work on your conversation skills."

They spent the rest of the afternoon teaching Todd this and that. By the time they were done,  
>dinner was ready. "Hey, uh, you guys want to stay for dinner?" Molly smiled after she had switched off the image inducer.<p>

"Sounds good. Not like we've got a lot of options at home," Todd said.

Sadness struck Molly. The Brotherhood was weird sometimes and stuff, but it hurt to see them all so down and out. Molly knew she couldn't fix all their problems, but she knew it would be within reason to help them at least find jobs so they wouldn't have to worry about where their next meal would be coming from.

* * *

><p>Dinner was, as usual, loud and eventful.<p>

"Jamie, no throwing food!"

"Pierre and Meggan, do I have to separate you two?"

"Ray, stop it!"

"Bobby, enough!"

"I think we should have gone out to eat," Remy said.

"This is cool," Todd smiled, "Y'all are like one big family."

Molly smiled to herself. They were. Okay, the kids fought have the time, but when it came down to the wire, the lot of them we're all there for each other.  
>Molly looked at Remy. Just like she was there for Remy. Just like she always wanted to be, making him feel safe and secure. They were everything to each other, but Molly wasn't sure what that even meant.<p>

She guessed it didn't mean they knew everything about each other.  
>Like Molly not being the tidiest person in the world. She cringed at the memory.<br>No, what they had was an emotional, deep connection. Friendship was the seed and romance was the bud. The flower would be love for the two of them one day.

'One day,' Molly reasoned, 'May come much sooner then I think.'

"What are you thinking about?" Remy smiled at her with a happy,  
>dreamy look on his face as he twirled pasta onto his fork.<p>

"Just...just thinking about us," Molly smiled.

"Us, yeah. So maybe after this we'll go out somewhere? If you're not too tired," Remy said.

Cleaning her room had been pretty exhausting.  
>"I guess, but we don't have much time until curfew," Molly said.<p>

"I'm not going to be paying attention to the clock. I'm going to be paying attention to _you_" Remy was being smooth.

Molly just laughed happily.

* * *

><p>About an hour later after dinner was finished and they'd said goodbye to the boys, Molly and Remy found themselves sitting in the back of the local dollar theater, snuggling closely. "You know I would like to actually _watch_ the movie this time," Molly smirked. "As you wish," Remy said.<p>

They watched, but Remy snuck kisses here and there. His lips had a lingering butter taste to them thanks to the popcorn.

Mollys mind was half on the movie and half on Remy. She wasn't stressed out about her feelings, she was just starting to feel a little confused. He was so warm. She snuggled closer against his chest. Remy treated her very well, obviously. That wasn't a problem.  
>He gave her space and freedom, and she appreciated it.<p>

Molly knew how much she liked him and cared for him, but she wondered if how far she was willing to go to keep him safe said something about her feelings.  
>She had been thinking about it all ever since they went to New Orleans together.<br>It wasn't lost on her that she could have gotten hurt or even died.  
>Did someone with "just" a crush go and risk their life like that for another person?<p>

Did they think that this guy was the one person they'd absolutely end up marrying without a doubt?

That when he walked into the room the whole world stopped?

When he smiled it was like the sun coming out on a cloudy day?

That his eyes we're the most gorgeous thing in the whole world besides himself?

Inside Molly knew she would care about Remy, even if his physical appearance changed.  
>If he was short, tall, thin, fat, young, old, whatever.<p>

Sure, they'd been through things where his appearance really had changed, but this time, Molly knew that as they aged and changes became permanent, she would still care a lot about him.

She just wasn't sure if such a feeling was love or not. She'd never been in love before, so she had nothing to compare such feelings to. All she could describe things lately were as a "deep affection" or simply "A very overwhelming crush".

Nothing more. It was ridiculous to claim to be in love so soon. Wasn't it?  
>Yeah, probably. Nothing to worry about.<p>

Remy leaned in to kiss her again. Molly thoroughly enjoyed it.  
>"Mmmm," Molly said.<p>

"Mmmm?" Remy echoed.

"Mmmm-mmmmmmm!" Molly was joyous.

* * *

><p>AN: I hate to say it, but I am a bit of a slob in real life. The extent of Molly's messy room is a slight exaggeration of myself and my room in real life. (I've never seen anything dragging itself across the floor however!) Embarrassing to say, but I am not the tidiest person in the world. I thought it would add another demension to Molly's character and make her less of an "Anti-Sue" or a "Mary-Sue". Long story, but in developing Molly,<br>someone pointed out that she struck them as very much an Anti-Sue, meaning a highly imperfect character that everyone in the story loves and will bend over backwards for, despite their faults. I'm trying very hard to take this into account lately and in later stories, have a few people in the mansion openly not like her or point out her flaws. (One of those people will be Scott, which I think speaks volumes for him to call out one of his team members as being an airheaded ditz-unfortunately it's not to her face, but I may do that at some point-when he has to trust her with helping save the world.)  
>Okay, sorry for the really long note. Please continue the fanfic!<p> 


	4. Chapter 4

Disclaimer:I don't own X-Men:Evolution, just myself (Called Molly Callum in 'fics.)  
>and any original charactersbackground characters that might pop up from time to time.

A little implying in this chapter.  
>It's supposed to be funny, I guess, but I always feel the need to put a warning just in case.<p>

And to anyone that already read it, if it offended/scared you/whatever, I'm very, very sorry! My sincerest apologies and I'll try to remember to put clear warnings next time! It's not that anything I write is bad, (I know there's a lot worse out there then the stuff I write), but I know there are kids out there and stuff and, I don't know, I just feel obligated is all.

* * *

><p>The next morning, Molly woke up all smiles and more full of energy then most mornings.<br>She was humming to herself and twirling down the hallway. Molly felt very happy. More then happy. Ecstatic for seemingly no reason at all.

"You alright there kid?" Logan stared at her, as they passed in the hallway.

"Fine! Better then fine. I'm feeling totally _amazing_ today!" Molly said,  
>continuing humming to herself.<p>

Suddenly Logan stopped her with a hand on her shoulder.  
>"What were you and Remy up to last night?"<p>

"Nothing. we came straight home after the movie. We we're a little late for curfew, but that was because the movie went on too long. No big deal," Molly couldn't _stop_ smiling.  
>She couldn't figure out for the life of her why Logan looked worried. Or why he was dragging her to Remys room. Or why he had just forced the door open.<br>Thankfully Remy was up and dressed, just finishing putting on his shirt.

"There's this thing called knocking," Remy glared at Logan.

"Alright, when I see things like _this_-" Logan gently shoved a seemingly-too-happy Molly in front of Remy-" I need to ask questions. What went on last night?"

"Nothing," Remy just looked confused, "We came home after the movie. Everyone knew we we're going out. Molly went to bed and I took a shower and fell asleep as soon as my head hit the pillow. What's wrong?"

Logan was looking increasingly frustrated.  
>"Everyone would just appreciate it if you didn't try to hide things. Just come clean like adults."<p>

Finally, it sunk in on the two of them.  
>"Wow, jeez!" Molly blushed, "Come on...we didn't...!"<p>

"Haven't we been through this once already?" Remy rolled his eyes with a sigh.

"It never hurts to double check," Logan said.

"Can't I just _be_ happy without people getting suspicious?" Molly griped, "We already said we're waiting until we get married for, uh, for that. How many times do we have to say it?"

"Appearantly saying it isn't enough," Remy murmered.

"Alright, alright. So I made a mistake. Don't get your underwear in a knot," Logan said, "You two just be careful, you got that?"

"We've got it," They said in unison, less then happy about the whole thing.  
>Logan left the room.<p>

"So...good morning my love," Remy smiled.

"Good morning," Molly rubbed the toes of one shoe against the carpet, looking coy. She stood on tip-toe to kiss Remy. Now she knew what all those lyrics about kissing in love songs meant. The ones where the singer sang that kisses were like flying, or you saw fireworks, or your heart skipped a beat or whatever. When Remy kissed Molly, she experienced all that and more. It was like her entire body was going to explode from all the joy and happiness she felt when Remy kissed her. Like the most beautiful symphony was going on inside of Molly, reverberating through her body and downwards, just to go back up from her toes, to her brain. Molly was a rocket and Remy's kiss...that was the flame on the match. It lasted for some time, then they went down to breakfast.

"You want a danish?" Remy held out a basket filled to the brim with cheese danishes to Molly. "You know it," Molly smiled, grabbing one.

"Piggy," Ray murmered, glancing at Molly since they were sitting next to each other.

Molly barely had the time to look up with half a danish hanging out of her mouth and say "Hmm?", before seeing Remy fly out of his seat.  
>"_What_ did you say?" Remys eyes were glowing. Rarely a good sign.<p>

"Woah, take it easy," Kurt teleported between the boys.

"Your girl eats too much," Ray wasn't aplogetic, probably in a bad mood,  
>"She's a lardo and will end up looking like the Blob eventually."<p>

There was too much going on at the table for everyone to notice the argument taking place. So Remy would stand up for Molly or Ray would just get away with it.

"...I know I eat too much," Molly said quietly, "I know I'm overweight, I'm a slob, I'm lazy, I'm annoying, I stutter. I know all the bad things about myself, so what's the use in pointing them out? To make me feel bad? I already feel bad. I have low self-esteem!"

"Okay, I'm sorry! Jeez!" Ray griped.

"Are you really sorry, Ray?" Molly glared at him, "Really?  
>I know you don't like me. It's not hard to tell. Whatevers bothering you, it doesn't mean you need to take it out on me." Molly left the table, obviously upset.<p>

Remy and Kurt just gave Ray looks that could kill, then went to catch up to Molly.

She was in her room, the obvious place to go when she became upset.  
>"Molly...?" Kurt opened the door enough for them to see in.<p>

"What? He's a jerk and it's not like he said anything I don't know already," Molly seemed more infuriated then blue.  
>The two of them walked in without invitation, sitting on either side of her on the bed.<p>

"He hurt your feelings," Remy said, looking like he wanted to call Ray some names not suitable for the printed page and have five minutes alone in a room with the boy.

"I guess so," Molly stared at the floor, "I just...I know I have more important things to worry about then that idiot making fun of me."

"Absolutely right!" Kurt smiled.

Remy reached out and hugged Molly.  
>"Hey, I was going to hug her," Kurt said.<p>

"Fat chance," Remy rolled his eyes, letting go.

"Jeez. You can _both_ hug me, I don't care!" Molly said.  
>She then had two pairs of arms each possessively wrapped around her.<p>

The three of them burst out laughing. "Not exactly what I meant," Molly was smiling again, smushed between them, "It's _very_ cozy though."

"It's like my mother always said, love is love," Kurt said, "She also said that food can heal anything, so why don't we go finish breakfast then go downtown? Hang for a while."

"Okay," Molly worked her way out of the gaggle of furry and muscular arms,  
>"I can see you two are trying to spoil me, so I'll bite."<p>

"We'll go, but I'm driving," Remy said.

"You don't trust my driving?" Kurt feigned being offended.

"I'll trust you with my life in a fight, but I really have to question the skills of a guy who sometimes drives with his feet," Remy said as they left the room. Molly got between them, linking arms.

"Yeah, well, at least I'm a better driver then Bobby's turning out to be," Kurt said.  
>Bobby had just gotten his permit. Most of the mansion was terrified, and rightfully so. Bobby was proving to be as horrifying as Kitty when she had gotten her permit, if not more.<p>

"Hah! We're all better driver's then Bobby. That's not a surprise," Molly said.

The conversation turned into talking about who was a better driver and Molly felt at ease again. She could put her worries and stresses aside for now.

* * *

><p>Molly turned over and opened her eyes. Three blurry figures we're standing in front of her. "AHHH!" She yelled, bolting upright and turning into her sleek tiger form.<p>

She blinked, staring at the three Brotherhood boys through now lime green eyes. They looked petrified. "Nobody move," Lance said through gritted teeth. "Move? Who wants to move?" Todd said.

Molly considered letting out a roar so loud it would make the mansion's foundation shake.  
>How could they just come into her room? Come to that, how did they manage to drag themselves out of bed before noon? Molly decided against scaring them. Instead she simply changed back,<br>quickly grabbing a robe from the closet for modestys sake. "As much as I like being woken up before my alarm goes off, you guys could have called first. And what's with coming into my room?" Molly was obviously annoyed.

Since the Brotherhood and the X-Men had become friendly through the fight with Apocolypse, Lance and Kitty's dating and now Freddy and Mollys friendship,  
>Charles had trusted the boys with the security code, so they could come in without setting off the alarms at the gate or inside. The fail-safe was that Charles could wipe their minds if they ever chose to betray the X-Men by using this information against them, so there wasn't much to worry about.<p>

"What, you afraid someone's gonna catch you shacking up with your man?" Todd snickered.  
>That earned a light smack across the back of the head from Freddy.<br>"Remy and I don't do that s-sort of stuff," Molly felt herself blush.

"Sure you don't," Todd stepped away from Freddy that time.

"I'm serious. We _don't_," Molly put on a stern look, "I'm not that kind of girl. We're gonna get married one day and not mess around before.  
>Now, uh, maybe you could wait downstairs for me? Please?"<p>

The three of them left. After Molly threw herself together, she went and knocked on Remy's door. He looked like she felt; Tired and completely out of it.  
>It was Saturday and on Saturday, the kids got to sleep in a little, starting breakfast around eight or nine instead of seven.<p>

"What's going on?" Remy yawned.

"Todd and the boys are here. I'll meet you downstairs. Sorry," Molly frowned.

"It's fine," Remy smiled a little, touching her hair, "Helping them makes you happy, and seeing you happy makes me happy. I just wish I could get a shower first."

"Maybe we can keep it short today. I just want to know why they came over so early," Molly couldn't help but yawn herself.  
>She joined the boys downstairs. "Uh, why did you come over here so early anyway?" She asked.<p>

"We called yesterday, but you we're out. Your phone was off too," Freddy said.

Molly recalled the prior days events. After breakfast herself, Kurt and Remy had spent the entire day goofing off. She didn't want to deal with calls-forgetting about the boys entirely-so she turned off her phone.  
>All three of them had.<p>

"I'm really sorry. I just wasn't thinking. I'll make it up to you today...somehow.  
>I am proud of you though, you all managed to wake up before noon," Molly smiled.<br>The boys looked very pleased with themselves.  
>"I thought we could keep it short, but since I screwed up yesterday and you're here early, we'll spend the whole day together. We can have breakfast later too!" Molly winked at Freddy since they shared a passion for food.<p>

Remy came downstairs, still looking a bit bedraggled, but better then he had when Molly fetched him. "'Morning. I'm gonna go make some coffee. Anybody want some?"

"Me!" Molly said, then rubbed her face and shaking her head with vigor, still trying to wake up.

"What's with you guys? I thought the great and powerful X-Men we're used to waking up at the crack of dawn," Lance said.

"Normally yes, but Saturday is our downtime. We don't wake up until around eight or so," Remy said, getting the canister out of the cupboard and starting the coffee maker.

"Sorry for waking you up," Freddy looked very apologetic.

"No big deal," Molly said, "Guess I should've told you before."

Remy and Molly had coffee, then they got started back to Todd's lessons,  
>snacking a little since everyone was already getting hungry quickly.<br>By the time Breakfast was served, they'd done a lot and it was easy to tell that Todd was showing marked improvement. Molly and Remy both looked very proud of their efforts.  
>Breakfast finished up and Todd looked expectantly at them.<p>

"Now what?" Todd asked.

They'd been doing a lot. Manners, table manners, general etiquette, and other stuff. Remy and Molly just looked at each other. "You're the romance expert," Molly said of her boyfriend.

"Yeah, but you're the woman," Remy said, "You know what women want from a guy."

"That's simple. Women just want romance, to be listened to and to feel appreciated," Molly said, "I'm sure that's all Wanda wants too, even if she can't, uh, express it very well."

"Okay," Remy said, "So that will be our next lesson.  
>Go see if you can borrow Kurt's image inducer."<p>

"Actually, I have a better idea," Molly smiled.  
>She took out her phone and dialed a number.<p> 


	5. Chapter 5

Disclaimer:I don't own X-Men:Evolution, just myself (Called Molly Callum in 'fics.)  
>and any original charactersbackground characters that might pop up from time to time.

* * *

><p>Within a half hour, Forge came by to drop of Molly's own personal image inducer.<p>

"That was way too easy," Forge said, "Next time you need to give me a challenge. Holograms are child's play."

Molly looked thoughtful for a moment, "You could try coming up with a milkshake maker that makes a shake with the perfect amount of thickness."

"A food project. That's something I've never tried," Forge said.

"That's nice," Remy smiled, shoving Forge out the door, "Sorry you have to leave so soon. See you! Please, _be_ a stranger!"

Remy locked the door, leaving Forge just standing there, glaring through the clear glass.

"You don't like him?" Lance said.

"Let's just say that whenever he comes over, bad things always seem to happen to me," Remy said.

"Regardless, that's no excuse to act like a big jerk," Molly let Forge back inside,  
>"Sorry. Remy's...uh..."<p>

"I know, I know," Forge said, "Hey, won't this count for the technology ban on my stuff?"

"It's an image inducer and you made it off site. Plus it's technology we already have, so I don't think it counts. I don't think it's going to cause any harm either," Molly smiled.

"Just to be on the safe side," Remy snatched it from Molly's hand, "We should test it out-on Forge." The smile on Remy's face was that of pure evil.

"I don't mind. I use myself as a Guinea pig all the time. Any real scientists does," Forge said with a challenging look.

"Great, now he's Doc Brown," Remy rolled his eyes, handing Forge the image inducer.

"Who's image should I use?" Forge asked, "The device has over 30,000 characters.  
>Actors, literary figures, pretty much anyone you can think of. I even pulled up pictures of all of you off the internet, so the X-Men and Brotherhood are in here too, just in case you might need it for something in the long term."<p>

"Ooh," Lance smirked, "How about Jessica Karaba?"

"Typical," Molly rolled her eyes, "Let's not recreate an image George Washington or Gandhi or Frank Sinatra, let's use the image inducer for everyone's favorite blonde bombshell."

"Oh please," Remy said, "Girls are just as shallow as guys. If Forge pulled up an image of that...that Max Vinettie guy, you'd be blacked out on the floor so fast I wouldn't have time to catch you."

"Remy you sound so jealous," Molly smirked.

"Of course I'm jealous," Remy huffed, crossing his arms (which made his biceps more prominent), "Seeing you drool over other guys just makes me infuriated,  
>even if they are just actors."<p>

"Can we please focus here?" A new female voice said.

Molly and Remy turned to see what looked like Jessica Karaba standing there in the foyer. Short, curvy and tan, with long blonde hair wearing an Oscar-worthy, somewhat revealing glittering red gown.

Remys mouth fell open. "If I didn't know that was really Forge, I'd be-"

"You'd be _what_ _Remy_?" Molly was glaring.

Remy smirked, "Ah, now who's the jealous one?"

"'M not jealous," Molly mumbled, staring at the carpet.

"Anyway," Forge/Jessica smirked, "I really should go through a few of the characters to make sure they're all working properly. Is this one covering me fully?"  
>Heshe turned around.

"Yes," Remy said, "Nice job on the back. Got her butt just right."

"Grrrawrr!" Molly snarled, starting to become a wolf.

"You're gonna lose it if you don't calm down, Molly!" Todd said, "Chill! It's just Forge."

"Ah, um," Molly stammered, more then a third of the way morphed, "Y-you're right.  
>Sorry guys." She changed back. She couldn't ever remember being so _insanely_ jealous.<p>

Forge nodded with approval. He went through a few other actors and some people,  
>finally stopping at-unfortunately-Max Venettie.<p>

"Eh, not bad," Molly just said, "You did a good job with that one."

"Huh?" Remy questioned, "Where's all the screaming and lusting and stuff?  
>I thought you always went crazy over this guy."<p>

Molly shrugged, "I...I don't know. It _is_ just Forge. I shouldn't have gotten so upset earlier. Um, I guess I'm just more tired then I thought. Sorry."

Forge turned off the watch and handed it to Molly.  
>"It wouldn't be a problem to make more, but try and be careful with that one. I'm not a factory you know."<p>

"No big deal. Thanks for taking the time to make it.  
>We might have some left-overs from breakfast if you're hungry," Molly said.<p>

"Sure, thanks," Forge said and left for the kitchen.

Everyone else went into the common room and sat down.  
>Molly sat between Remy and Freddy, switching the watch on and taking on Wanda's appearance.<p>

"What first?" Todd wondered.

"I think we ought to stand back and see what you do," Remy said,  
>"Just pretend that we're not here."<p>

The rest of them hung back and watched Todd try and be polite, nice,  
>gentlemanly. Trying to put everything he had learned so far into practice.<p>

"So, uh, nice weather we're having," Todd smiled, looking at "Wanda's"  
>face and keeping a normal distance.<p>

"Yes it is," She said.

"What have you been up to lately?" Todd said.

"Yesterday I went shopping..." She said. Molly launched into this long story, testing Todd's attention span. It worked. He paid complete attention.

"Very cool," Todd commented, "I'm going to get something from the kitchen. You want anything?"

"Water, as long as your offering," She smiled.

"Well I'll be," Remy whistled, "The boy _can_ be taught."

Molly turned off the image inducer, actually hugging Todd. "You did it! I'm totally proud of you!"

"This is great and all, but we still need to find jobs," Lance pointed out.

"Got it covered," Molly smiled, "This afternoon we're taking you down to a warehouse that sells jeans for interviews. I think it's going to work out really, really well."

"That said, when we return, I think it will be time for our boy to try out what he's learned for real," Remy smiled.

"Yeah!" Molly smiled, "Really impress her!"

"Okay, uh, I guess I'm ready," Todd looked unsure.

"Just act nice and you'll be alright. Really," Molly smiled.

The boys went home. Molly gave them the address for the job interview,  
>knowing they could handle it themselves and she didn't have to hold their hand for every little thing that came up.<p>

"This is really bringing out your maternal instincts, isn't it?" Remy hugged her waist from behind as they watched the boys drive off from inside the mansion.

"I don't know. I guess so. I hadn't really thought about it like that," Molly looked up at him.

"I can see it _and_ I can feel it. When we're around them you have this overwhelming feeling of pity...of defensiveness. Like they're your kids and you don't want to see them get hurt or something. I've never seen anything like it before," Remy marveled.

"I guess I just want to see them get on their feet. I mean, it's so depressing.  
>Their house is always a mess, they're always broke, they got expelled and they can barely afford to eat half the time. It's unreal!" Molly said turning to face Remy. He let her go.<p>

"Okay, that's all understandable, but look, sometimes you can't always change people who don't want to change. It's very, very sweet and very nobel that you want to help them, but they _are_ old enough to do all this stuff themselves. They can get jobs and Todd doesn't really need us to straighten out his love life.  
>They just lack motivation. We all know that they're lazy and not too bright.<br>One day it's going to dawn on them that they need to grow up, but you can't help them out the whole time. If you don't let them figure it out for themselves, they never will. Understand?" Remy said.

Molly felt like someone had just burst her bubble. Then she started crying a little.  
>She couldn't help it. Remy was trying to tell her that her dream of seeing the brotherhood boys become hard working, productive members of society was futile.<br>Just that; A dream. And he was completely right.

Remy hugged her. "I just wanted to...to...t-to help," Molly started crying harder, finding it hard to speak.

Remy sighed, "Your heart is in the right place. I didn't say all that to make you cry, honey,  
>but I can see it all falling apart. If they lose this job, you'll help them get another and another and it won't end. You're so thoughtful that it might kill you.<br>They probably wouldn't know they'd be taking advantage of you, but they would be and I would hate to see that happen. It was bad enough we cleaned their house _for_ them,  
>I can't let you run yourself ragged trying to make them have lives too."<p>

After a minute, Molly wiped her tears away.  
>"I never saw it like that. You're right. You're absolutely right. Even if we're kind of their friends, they can do all that stuff for themselves. I'm not anyone's mom. If they fail, they fail.<br>That's it. After this they can do everything for themselves,  
>it's really not up to me."<p>

Remy smirked, his red eyes twinkling, "You know, if you're looking for an orphan to take care of, I could use a little tender loving care."

That got Molly to laugh again. "Yeah, come sit on my lap and I'll read you a story," She giggled.

"Well I never was read stories as a kid," Remy continued to smirk.

"...You _seriously_ want me to read to you?" Molly was incredulous.

"Please?" Remy gave her huge 'puppy dog' eyes.

"Oh, come on," Molly took his hand and they went to the library.

* * *

><p>"...And the first billy goat said-"<p>

"Uh, hey guys?" Amara stopped their reading, giving them a weird look.  
>This was because Remy actually was sitting on Mollys lap as she read him a story aimed at grade-school children.<p>

"Yeah? What's up?" Molly smiled, looking up from the book and trying to ignore the fact that Remy's weight was putting her right leg to sleep.

"Besides the fact that you two are really weird? I just wanted to know who that cute guy was leaving with Lance and Freddy earlier," Amara smiled sweetly.  
>Sweetly, because her and Molly had never really been on the best of terms, and since her and Molly hadn't been close, Remy didn't exactly hold a high opinion of the genuine,<br>real life Princess.

"Uh, that was just Todd. Nothing to get worked up over," Molly said.

"Well I'd still like to actually meet him in person," Amara said.

"We'll have him over tonight then," Remy said. Amara left.

"Okay, what are you planning?" Molly said, wiggling her leg a little, trying to shake it off before the numbness became painful.

"Maybe he can get a different girlfriend. Just in case it doesn't work out with Wanda," Remy explained.

"Oh jeez. Todd and Amara, Lance and Kitty...Me and you. Scott and Logan are just going to _love_ this. Half the X-Men dating the brotherhood boys.  
>Why don't we invite Blaze and Onyx and the rest of the Acolytes over and hold a make-out party," Molly rolled her eyes.<p>

"We could have our own little make-out party right here," Remy smiled, tipping her head up and putting his free arm around her shoulders.

"Yeah, great, whatever. Could you just get off me now? My leg is starting to fall asleep so bad it's starting to really-oww!-hurt," Molly winced as the tingling sensation moved up her calf, getting sharp.

"Why didn't you tell me?" Remy quickly moved, getting up and sitting next to her.

"You looked cute," Molly said simply, rubbing her leg back and forth.  
>Molly finished reading to Remy and they went to go make lesson plans for the younger kids when they got home from school that afternoon.<p>

After that, Molly had to finish writing a paper for college, so she went to her computer, sat down and stared at the document.

The only problem was that she couldn't focus.

The only thing she could focus on was Remy. Even if he had verbally splashed her with ice cold water today, he still seemed to make her world whole. If not for him, she really would have run herself into the ground trying to help those silly messed up kids. Molly loved them all, especially Freddy and even Pietro, because at their core they weren't completely lazy, selfish slackers. The good in them was there if you looked hard enough. Remy had been right though, they needed to learn to grow up and they could do that without Molly's help. One day life was going to hit them in the head and it wasn't going to be pretty.  
>So in that way, Remy had looked out for her. Saved her.<p>

Because Remy cared about her. Because Remy, well, loved her.

Molly kept staring out into space, smiling to herself.  
>As much time as she had spent worrying and confused lately,<br>she still couldn't put into words what it meant to love someone.  
>Molly knew what love between friends was and what love for family was and even what it meant to love friends like family,<br>but romantic love? That was a mystery. As mysterious as the deep ocean or outer space.

Remy's love for her was always clear, without doubt. She still couldn't believe that he had held in his feelings about her for so long.  
>Long enough for a simple crush to develop into love. It had taken about a year for that to happen for him. How long was it going to take her?<p> 


	6. Chapter 6

Disclaimer:I don't own X-Men:Evolution, just myself (Called Molly Callum in 'fics.)  
>and any original charactersbackground characters that might pop up from time to time.

* * *

><p>That evening, Todd came over for dinner alone. Amara sat across from Todd at the dining room table while Molly and Remy sat as far away as possible to give the two of them a little privacy.<p>

"They look like they're having a good time," Molly smiled.

"Hopefully they are," Remy said.

After dinner, Remy and Molly decided to make themselves scarce, taking a walk through the garden. Fireflies were starting to come out, even though it was a little early in the season for them and the weather was just starting to get warm in the evening. It struck Molly as very romantic. The funny part was that neither of them had to do anything to provide such an atmosphere. The great outdoors did everything.

The two of them made their way to the gazebo. It was a beautiful spot, overlooking the ocean. Molly was a little regretful that the sun had already set. This was a perfect vantage point to see it at, she guessed.

"Even in the dark it's still really gorgeous out here," Remy sat on the bench that encircled the interior. Molly smiled. It was like he'd read her mind.  
>She sat next to him, playing with her hair and then just snuggling. It wasn't very cold out, but she did enjoy snuggling with him.<p>

They just sat there in the semi-darkness, not saying anything for some time.

"Uh...I probably should've worn jeans," Molly said brightly.

Wow, way to ruin a sweet moment.

"Come here," Remy smiled, picking her up and putting her into his lap.  
>He rubbed her legs a little, trying to generate heat. "It's okay, I'm fine," Molly said quietly. She leaned her head against his chest and closed her eyes, listening to the rhythm of his heartbeat.<p>

"I wouldn't mind staying like this for a while," Remy said.  
>"Me too," Molly said with a smile, keeping her eyes closed.<br>There was something so sweet about just concentrating on Remy's warmth, his heartbeat and the sound of his voice.  
>"...Don't fall asleep on me, Petite," He laughed a little.<p>

"Mmm. No...no. It's just nice. You're warm and I like sitting in your lap like this," Molly said. She did have a full belly and felt a little sleepy, but had no intention of falling asleep.

She felt Remy kiss the top of her head. She listened as he started singing something in a soft voice.

"Love me tender, love me sweet ...never let me go You have made my life complete ... and I love you so

Love me tender, love me true, all my dreams fulfill For, my darling I love you, and I always will

Love me tender, love me long ... take me to your heart For its there that I belong ... and we'll never part

Love me tender, love me true ... all my dreams fulfill For, my darling I love you ... and I always will

Love me tender, love me dear ... tell me you are mine Ill be your thru all the years ... til the end of time

Love me tender, love me true...all my dreams fulfill For, my darling I love you ... and I always will For, my darling I love you ... and I always will"

Molly opened her eyes. "I didn't know you could sing."

"I can sing. You didn't think _I_ could sing?"  
>He teased.<p>

"You just don't seem like the singing type,"

Remy kept humming and Molly found herself comfortably falling asleep in his arms.

'Whatever love is,' Molly thought as she drifted off, 'When someone loves you...it's nice.'

* * *

><p>The week flew by. Amara told them that having Todd over was really fun and he seemed like a nice guy, but after that, neither Molly nor Remy heard much about it.<br>They didn't hear from the boys at all until Saturday afternoon when they dropped by unexpectedly.

"Can't they learn to _call_ before coming over?" Remy muttered to himself as he saw them standing at the front door after starting to get very cozy with Molly on one of the couches in the foyer. The two of them went out to meet their guests.

"We didn't think it would be polite to just barge in this time," Freddy smirked at Molly.

"Yeah, saw you trying to give her some lip," Todd said brightly,  
>almost getting backhanded by Lance.<p>

"Uh, anyway," Molly was embarrassed, "Hows it going? What's the news on the job situation-and the Wanda situation?"

"We got the jobs," Lance said, making Molly and Remy smile, "We're starting Monday. As for Wanda, well, Todd, you tell 'em."

"She wasn't as taken in as I hoped, but she did let me down easy.  
>The good news is, I still managed to get dates!" Todd looked very happy.<p>

"Dates? Plural? As in dates?" Molly and Remy said in unison.  
>Todd getting more then one date at all-much less all at once-really _was_ a miracle.<br>The couple didn't even call each other on talking in unison,  
>they just stood there looking shocked.<p>

"Check it out," Todd jerked a thumb behind him.

Molly and Remy looked out to outside the Institute gate to see a small throng of teenage girls, anywhere from 14 to 17, all grouped together and screaming for Todd to come back out as if he were a rock star. Some we're even shouting that they loved him and shouting things that, well,  
>that made Remy want to cover Mollys ears.<p>

"Am I dreaming? I mean, really, women are screaming for Todd and he's taking them out on dates," Remy said, "I have to be dreaming."

"If you were dreaming, Todd wouldn't be here and I would probably be decked out in Princess Leia's slave girl outfit feeding you grapes.  
>So no, you're not dreaming," Molly said. She turned to Todd, "Really now, what did you do? Bribe or something? I thought we did well in making you look good and teaching you manners, but I didn't think we were _that_ good!"<p>

"I didn't _do_ anything," Todd said, "We we're hanging out at the mall and I was feeling down over not getting Wanda, so the guys suggested I try and pick up some different girl. So I went over to one and started talking about how she looked nice and I think I said something about reading Shakespeare-"

"Hold it," Remy held up a hand, "So you lied to get dates?"

"He didn't lie," Lance said, "He's got this whole collection of Shakespeare plays at home. It's his hobby."

"So after that all these girls we're practically mauling me,  
>begging for a date because 'I was so sensitive and deep',<br>so I, like, appeased them and now they won't quit following me.  
>It's great!"<p>

"Uh, well, just keep up what we taught you I guess," Molly said,  
>"And maybe try to to keep your jobs this time around. In the long run, it's going to be worth it."<p>

"So, anyway," Freddy said, "You guys did a lot and tomorrow there's this free concert in the park going on. We thought we could take you."

"Sounds fun," Remy said, "Thanks for the invite."

The boys had other places to be-actually saying that they were going to go home and clean up the house-so they left.

"Okay," Remy looked at Molly, "Maybe I was a little wrong. Maybe giving them a nudge in the right direction helped them out.  
>Maybe you weren't going to kill yourself trying to be nice to them."<p>

"No, no. You had it right the first time," Molly said, "I just want to see how long it's going to last. Something tells me that you were right and that is _is_ going to fall apart in the long run. They really aren't what you would call committed."

"Well, no matter what happens, I'm just glad I got you to see that they're not your responsibility and that you can't fix everything. You can try, but it doesn't always work out so great," Remy hugged her, "Now why don't we go and get some ice cream?"

"Did you say ice cream?" Kitty came up the walk along with Kurt, Sam, Jamie, Amara and Tabitha.

"No! Couples only!" Remy suddenly grabbed Molly possessively, pressing her into his chest, " You guys can't come along!"

"Well there _are_ six of us," Sam smiled.

"Mmhmm? Rmmy? Can't breeth!" Mollys muffled voice said as she was still being forced against him.  
>He let her go. "Jeez! Just let them come, it's not going to kill you."<p>

"...But I like having you to myself," Remy pouted,  
>putting his hands in his pockets and scuffing the ground with one shoe.<p>

Molly rolled her eyes. Her boyfriend had gone from being nineteen to being five in a matter of minutes. Good grief!  
>"Tell you what? We'll go out with them now, and when we get back we can take a nice long drive _alone_ up to look-out peak."<p>

That made Remys eyes light up. Quite literally. They glowed so brightly it was almost blinding. "I'm all for that! Alright,  
>go pile into the van. I'll drive," Remy said.<p>

The kids raced to the garage with the two love-birds walking behind them hand in hand.

* * *

><p>It wasn't until a few weeks later until Molly heard from the boys again.<br>Freddy called her to chat. "So you guys still working hard?" Molly asked.

"Yeah, you were right. We needed to work together instead of separately.  
>I move the crates, Todd helps stack, and Lance likes using the fork lift and bossing us around," Freddy sounded happy.<p>

"Cool!" Molly replied.

"Yeah, it's great, but I got bad news too. Todd went back to being, you know, himself," Freddy sounded a little disappointed.

"He just couldn't keep it up, could he?" Molly groaned.

"Yeah. I mean, he lost his fan club but at least he showers now and brushes his teeth everyday. We convinced him that he was going to get fired from work if he didn't at least do that much. Other then that, he went back to hitting on Wanda, eating bugs and acting like a scab," Freddy explained.

"Ah, well, maybe one of these days he'll get it together. Or maybe, you know,  
>you just can't change a Toad into something he's not," Molly went into her room and flopped onto her bed.<p>

"Yeah. Hey, you want to come over for dinner tonight? I'm making pad thai," Freddy said.

The drool was suddenly pooling up in Molly's mouth and she quickly swallowed. Pad thai was the food equivalent to Remy coming into her room looking sweaty, being shirtless and wearing blue jeans to make out.  
>Not that he ever did that, but it was something Molly liked to fantasize about.<br>"I'll be there in a few. You want me to go get something for desert?" She asked.

"Nah. I've got chocolate cake in the oven," Freddy said. In response all he got was a weird groaning noise from Molly. "Uh...are you okay?" He asked.

"Oh, uh, sorry. I'm fine. I'm headed over now," Molly said.

"You can bring Remy if you want," Freddy said.

"No way!" Molly said, "He'd hog it all!"

Molly said bye, hung up, then raced to get outside. The car was useless when she could get there in half the time by running as a wolf. Sometimes having powers made life that much better. She looked forward to being with her friends that night, but, she realized as her now canine mouth salivated,  
>the food was foremost on her mind. Molly was happy and for now that was all that mattered.<p>

* * *

><p>Disclaimer: I obviously don't own the lyrics to 'Love Me Tender'. According to the internet it was public domain at one time, so, uh, I used it here.<br>It fit perfectly.


End file.
